


Lord of Leaves

by QuestionableCorrosion



Series: Lethargy [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-11
Updated: 2015-11-11
Packaged: 2018-05-01 03:47:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5190989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuestionableCorrosion/pseuds/QuestionableCorrosion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>* What is it?<br/>* Nothing</p>
<p>The ruins grow smaller.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lord of Leaves

The monsters had their own kingdom, and Frisk had theirs.  
  
The red leaves rustled underneath them and tickled them through their shirt as they turned to find a more comfortable position. They spread their limbs wide before curling up again, moulding the pile of leaves into a cosy nest.  
  
Frisk turned their head upwards. From that very spot, when they squinted and tilted their head to the left, the cracks on the ceiling where three of them met looked like the silhouette of a tiny bird.  
  
They had discovered that two weeks ago.  
  
They breathed in slowly, becoming one with quietness. Even this close to the gaping hole in the ceiling, the air could get a bit stuffy. It was easier when they laid down and focused entirely on inhaling and exhaling.  
  
The ruins were now as familiar to them as the back of their hands, and roughly as dangerous. They solved the puzzles with routine, knew every monster dwelling among the leaves and ancient pillars by name, and ate more donuts and pie than ever before the fall.  
  
Toriel still sometimes fussed over Frisk wandering around by themselves, but her warnings were but mild, everyday concern and the occasional phone call. As time had passed with no incident, she had come to the same conclusion as Frisk; even for a human, the ruins were safe.  
  
( _Only sometimes, Frisk thought they caught a glimpse of something yellow and green in the corner of their eye, quickly vanishing as soon as they blinked..._ )  
  
"Oh...I didn't think anyone would be here..."  
  
Frisk blinked and looked up without raising their head. It was strange how Napstablook managed to convey such melancholia with nothing but their eyes.  
  
Frisk smiled as kindly as they could. "Hello, Napstablook." It was impossible to dislike the poor ghost.  
  
"Sorry...I didn't mean to impose on you..." Napstablook looked from side to side. "I'll go elsewhere if I'm bothering you..."  
  
In response, Frisk shuffled until they were on the edge of the pile of leaves, leaving plenty of room for a ghost to lie next to them.  
  
"Oh..." Napstablook stared at the empty spot, then back at Frisk. "Are you sure...?"  
  
Frisk smiled encouragingly.  
  
"Then...I suppose...It would be rude to just leave when you are asking me to stay..." and without further murmurs, Napstablook slowly descended onto the pile of leaves, head in the opposite direction from Frisk's.  
  
Frisk closed their eyes. Time stood still in the ruins, but even frozen moments were easier with a friend.

* * *

  
Frisk woke up without being aware of falling asleep in the first place. A single leaf had wormed itself inside their shirt, and they wiggled to remove it, attracting Napstablook's attention.  
  
"Oh...I thought you were asleep."  
  
Frisk reached inside their shirt and finally managed to snag the offending leaf. They let it drop and watched float back onto the pile. "I was. Sorry."  
  
"No, I'm the one who should be sorry...I must have bored you..."  
  
Frisk shook their head. "It's not you." They could no longer remember when it had begun, but for a while now a day hadn't gone by when they hadn't fallen asleep at the wrong time.  
  
Lately, it was sometimes very difficult to stay awake at all.  
  
"How are things at the snail race track?" They ventured to ask to change the subject.  
  
"Oh. Pretty quiet...you know how it is...Waterfall's a lot like the ruins sometimes..." Napstablook visibly hesitated. "But maybe...you'd like to see Waterfall sometimes? I could show you my place and play you my mix CDs...and...well, that's it really."  
  
Frisk focused on the cracks on the ceiling. They felt an unpleasant tingle in their stomach.  
  
"Oh no...I didn't mean to make it awkward...You don't have to come if you don't want to..." Napstablook looked down. "Forget I said anything..."  
  
"I would really like to visit your place," Frisk said quickly.  
  
"Oh." Ghosts didn't blush, but Frisk was pretty Napstablook would have done so now if they could. "That's...I mean...you don't have to say that just to humour me..."  
  
"I mean it." Frisk hesitated. "I'll..." They had meant to say "ask Mom about it", but the all too vivid mental image of the look on Toriel's face when they had last asked to leave the ruins swam to their consciousness. "I'll think about it."  
  
"Okay..." Napstablook didn't sound very happy, but then again they never did.  
  
The phone in Frisk's pocket rang. They fished it out. "Sorry, I have to get this." They placed the phone on their ear. "Hi, Mom."  
  
"Are you far from home, my child?" Toriel's gentle tones washed over Frisk like a soothing balm. "Food is almost ready, so if you are done playing you should head back soon."  
  
Frisk nodded. "Okay, Mom."  
  
"Remember not to run in any of the corridors with puzzles. You might trip on something."  
  
"Yes, Mom."  
  
They could almost hear Toriel smile. "Thank you, my child, for being so patient with me."  
  
Frisk thrust the phone back into their pocket. "I have to go home now. Dinner." They grabbed the rest of their belongings — a few pencils and a tattered notebook — from where they had left them by the pile of leaves.  
  
"Oh..." Napstablook looked around. "Guess I should leave, too...I should work on my mix CD..." They gave Frisk a nod. "See you again...I mean, only if you want to..."  
  
The ghost turned to leave. Frisk hesitated, then raised their voice. "Napstablook?"  
  
"Yes...?"  
  
Ghosts couldn't be hugged, so instead Frisk put all their heart into their smile. "You're my best friend."  
  
"Oh gee..." And somehow, against all of Frisk's expectations, Napstablook really did blush.

* * *

  
"Here you are." Toriel placed a hefty piece of pie in front of Frisk, quickly ruffling their hair before returning to the counter to cut herself a slice. "Did you have a good day today?"  
  
"Uh huh." Frisk took a quick nibble at the crust while Toriel's back was turned. It was as rich and warm as it had been the day before and the day before that. "I met Napstablook today."  
  
"That's nice." Toriel sat down opposite of Frisk and waited from them to sink their fork into the pie before starting on her own slice. "Did you get your fieldwork done?"  
  
Frisk nodded, too busy chewing to talk. They had sketched all the plants and monsters Toriel had asked them to in their notebook soon after they had parted ways after lunch.  
  
The snails were tastier than usual. Toriel had added extra garlic into the pie to indulge Frisk, no doubt.  
  
Toriel beamed. "Shall we have a look at them before your bedtime story?"  
  
Frisk nodded again. Their thoughts were elsewhere, far away from their studies or the pie.  
  
They could feel Toriel trying to see through them. If the gaze was probing, it was only so in the most benign, loving sense.  
  
"How about I read you a special story tonight, my child?" Toriel continued after a long silence. "I do not believe you have heard it yet."  
  
Frisk nodded and smiled faintly.  
  
They were going to be a good, obedient child. And if that meant pretending at times, what of it? It was better than seeing the pain in Toriel's eyes again.  
  
Toriel didn't want Frisk to leave the ruins. That was enough for Frisk. They wouldn't argue.  
  
Children should listen to their mothers, after all.  
 

* * *

  
The more they wandered around, the more the ruins seemed to contract.  
  
Very few monsters lived there, and even fewer Frisk could strike up a meaningful conversation with. Apart from Napstablook, only the wiser Froggits could hold a proper kind of discussion, and after a while they had little to say.  
  
Frisk had mastered the puzzles to the point where they could do them all blindfolded. Or at least they probably could, as Toriel had come across them before they had reached the last two hurdles and removed the ribbon they had tied around their eyes.  
  
Their bug collection, too, was about as complete as it could get.  
  
It was probably spring outside, or maybe even summer. It didn't matter much in the ruins, with one autumn day flowing into the next with the same structure and routines.  
  
Every day, Toriel would teach them something new, everything from math to writing, but mostly about monsters and animals. Every day, Frisk would complete their fieldwork to the best of their ability, and receive the adulations with a bashful smile. Every day, Toriel would return to the spot where they had first met.

On most days, Frisk would join her.  
  
Something about the patch of golden flowers, radiant and sun-like even during the darkest of days, always captured Frisk's attention. Many a day they had remained motionless for minutes, idly pondering them.  
  
Toriel gave them odd looks when she noticed, but never said anything.  
  
Sometimes, Frisk found themselves stumbling against a wall, having fallen asleep on their feet.

* * *

  
"Hee hee hee..."  
  
Frisk's eyes fluttered open. They had fallen asleep on the big pile of leaves again, from what they could remember in the middle of making leaf angels.  
  
It took several blinks to regain their full eye sight, but shivers ran down their spine from the first. That laugh was unforgettable.  
  
"You think you're being clever, don't you?" Flowey's high-pitched voice had a menacing ring to it. "You think that by staying put, you can squeeze your eyes shut and cram your fingers in your ears and pretend the rest of the world doesn't exist? You think you can pretend she's really your mother and that's the end of this?"  
  
Frisk had never met anyone who could sneer quite like Flowey. Something about that curl of his lips, that supreme confidence, that utter contempt created a look that was beyond mere mockery, a kind of distilled form of absolute scorn.  
  
Frisk swallowed. The initial nightmare had mostly faded from their mind, but the memory of what Flowey was capable of hadn't. It was all they could do to keep themselves from shaking.  
  
But that was exactly what Flowey wanted, wasn't it? Keep Frisk cowering in fear?  
  
Frisk sat up, filled with determination.  
  
"Golly, did a Whimsum get your tongue?" Flowey chuckled again. "Or are you still as dull-witted as when we first met?"  
  
"What do you want?" Frisk asked, quietly to mask their quivering voice.  
  
"I came to greet an old friend, obviously." Flowey's eyes locked with Frisk's. "I have been watching you, you know.  I've seen your act, playing the dutiful child day after day."  
  
Frisk said nothing. They had a strong suspicion arguing with Flowey would only anger him.  
  
Flowey sneered again. "Boy, that really is your answer to everything, isn't it? You'll just pretend you have no thoughts of you own and hope your problems go away by themselves? Hee hee...That suits me just fine. Keep pretending you're safe here. Stay here until you turn to dust. And when you do..." Flowey's face became that of a nightmare, _"I will regain my place as the god of the underground."_  
  
Cold sweat ran down Frisk's forehead.  
  
Flowey's expression returned to normal. "Well? Aren't you going to say anything?"  
  
Frisk kept their face impassive.  
  
Silence reigned.  
  
Flowey sighed.  
  
"You know..." He glared at Frisk. "When I first realised your will over this world overrode mine, I thought things might be interesting at least. Boy, was I wrong or what?" The murderous smile re-emerged. "But that is fine. I can wait. I have waited longer than you can ever imagine, my friend. Your sorry little life will come to an end before you even notice. And then..." the rest of the sentence was drowned out by laughter.  
  
Frisk pretended to be elsewhere.  
  
"So, as I was saying," Flowey's eyes were scanning Frisk's face carefully, like looking for the slightest change in expression. "Stay caged here. It suits me perfectly." He winked. "Golly, didn't I get lucky? Of all the humans that might have fallen here, I got one that will never get in my way of my plans."  
  
And just like that, he was gone.  
  
The pile of leaves no longer felt cosy.

* * *

  
The ruins were Frisk's entire world. And they were getting smaller by the day.  
  
Toriel tugged Frisk in and kissed them on the forehead. Frisk barely felt it, and mumbled the words back like a robot.  
  
Another night with blind dreams, with the unknown but now familiar voice pleading someone Frisk didn't know to stand up. Another day on the border of sleep and wakefulness.  
  
A night came when Frisk couldn't sleep at all, from fear the walls would cave in on them and bury them.

* * *

  
"I won't be long." Toriel leaned down to wipe an errant lock of hair from Frisk's face. She no longer had to crouch quite so much; they had grown half a palm's length since the fall.  
  
Frisk nodded.  
  
The look of concern Toriel gave Frisk pierced them to the bone, gentle as it was. She had long since noticed how lethargic Frisk had become and doted on them even more, but by now it was clear she didn't know how to fix their ailment any more than she knew the cause.  
  
Frisk wasn't sure they knew the cause, either.  
  
They resisted the urge to hug Toriel. It wouldn't be right. Not with what they were going to do.  
  
Toriel's eyes were still on them. "How about I pick up some Monster Candy for you while I'm out? Would you like that?"  
  
Frisk shook their head.  
  
"I see." Toriel smiled, but it was her eyes had struck Frisk's heart. "Be good now, alright? Don't overexert yourself."  
  
Frisk watched Toriel grow smaller as she walked away from the home. They kept one hand on the door frame to steady themselves.  
  
It had been so difficult to breathe lately, almost as if the lack of oxygen had become a permanent part of them.  
  
It was even harder to keep their eyes open.  
  
As soon as Frisk was sure Toriel was well and truly gone, they glanced gingerly at the staircase leading down, and retreated into their room.  
  
They opened the chest of toys and rummaged through it. At the very bottom was a letter Frisk had written days ago, when the decision had first crystallised itself.  
  
They carefully placed all the toys back in the box before leaving and shutting the door. Toriel had kindly instructed them on the importance of keeping things in order. Doing the right thing there was the least they could do.  
  
Children should to listen to their mothers, after all.  
  
Frisk blinked away sudden tears, then wiped their eyes dry on their sleeves. No crying until the end.  
  
It had to be done. Soon enough, the ruins would become smaller than Frisk was. The ruins would crush them.  
  
They snuck into Toriel's room and placed the letter on the corner of her desk, right next to her diary.  
  
They took their cellphone out of their pocket, and hesitated. It _was_ Toriel's, after all. They had no right to it, not after deceiving her like this. But would seeing the phone and knowing all contact was forever severed only make Toriel feel worse?  
  
In the end, they kept it. Neither taking it nor leaving it felt good. They would allow themselves this bit of childishness.  
  
Likewise, they ignored the pang of guilt that came from raiding the pantry. Toriel would only be more worried if they didn't have food with them, they reasoned.  
  
They left the chocolate bar well alone, though.  
  
Their footsteps echoed in the long corridor, sending palpitations to their chest.  
  
The door took some effort to slide open, but nothing Frisk couldn't accomplish with determination. They made sure to shut it properly.  
  
They slouched towards the exit, all thought removed from their body. It was as if their legs were working on their own, and their mind was just along for the ride.  
  
There was light.

* * *

The cold air struck Frisk's face like a slap.  
  
The shock wore off, and they were left gazing at a bleak, wintry landscape, completely dominated by snow. A stark line of barren trees trailed a narrow path leading away from the ruins as far as Frisk could see, and on the other side of the path were steep cliffs, appearing all but unscalable.  
  
There were no signs of life.  
  
Somewhere ahead was Waterfall. That was all Frisk knew.  
  
They breathed.  
  
The air was cold enough to feel like spikes in Frisk's lungs, but all the sweeter for it.  
  
It made them feel awake.  
  
It made them feel alive.  
  
They were still underground. They were just as trapped as they had been a moment ago. Their heart felt like it was about to burst every time they remembered Toriel's smile.

But somehow, despite all that, Frisk took another deep breath and finally their first tremulous step onto the snowy path.


End file.
